Mar 31, 2014

Conor Oberst Reveals "Upside Down Mountain" Cover Art

MUSIC NEWS - Singer-songwriter Conor Oberst today revealed the cover art; The Creation of the Bulls by his friend Ian Felice, for his new solo record Upside Down Mountain, which is out on May 19 on the Nonesuch Records label. Stream his new track, “Governor’s Ball”, below.

What began as exploratory demos with producer-musician Jonathan Wilson at his Fivestar Studios in the Echo Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, in a home Wilson rents from Oberst, became the first de facto album sessions. Returning to his native Omaha, Nebraska, Oberst kept rolling with the help of frequent collaborator, engineer, and friend Andy LeMaster at his own ARC Studios. Even more tracking followed in Omaha last November and December. Then Oberst and Wilson moved south to Blackbird Studio in Nashville.

“This is a return to an earlier way I wrote,” Oberst says of the songs on Upside Down Mountain,. “It’s more intimate or personal, if you will. Even it all my songs come from the same place, you make different aesthetic decisions along the way. For me, language is a huge part of why I make music. I’m not the greatest guitar player or piano player—I’m not the greatest singer, either—but I feel if I can come up with melodies I like that are fused with poetry I’m proud of, then that’s what I bring to the table. That’s why I’m able to do this.”

Oberst kicks off the first leg of a world tour in support of the new album on May 8in North Carolina with his friends and colleagues Dawes appear on the bill as “Special Guests”; both opening the concert and acting as Oberst’s band for the tour.

Prior to the album release, a limited-edition seven-inch single will be released exclusively for Record Store Day (Saturday, April 19th). This special single will feature album track “Hundreds Of Ways” along with album outtake “Fast Friends” on the B-side.